Safety lowering device



April 4, 1950 c. H. SHERBROOK ET AL 2,502,896

' SAFETY LOWERING DEVICE Filed May 6, 1947 I 2 sheets-sheet 1 & 3%

INVENTOR. C/arencc f1 She/wreak 61 Leo/7:290 F No/My f7 tic/"Megs April 4, 1950 c. H. SHERBROOK ET AL 2,502,896

SAFETY LOWERING DEVICE Filed May 6, 1947 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. C/0/"6/7C6 f7. She/"brook d Lag 70rd F A/o//eg Patented Apr. 4, 1950 SAFETY LOWERING DEVICE Clarence H. Sherbrook and Leonard F. Nolley, Flint, Mich.

Application May 6, 1947, Serial No. 746,192

1 Claim. 1

This invention relates to improvements in devices for safely lowering heavy objects or persons and more particularly to an improved device adapted to be secured in a window or other opening in a building wall at an upper floor level to serve as a fire escape so that a person trapped on an upper floor of a building during a fire in the building may be safely 10wered to the ground. The device is capable however of other uses and may be used for various other purposes without in any way exceeding the scope of the invention.

It is among the objects of the invention to provide an improved safety lowering device which is simple in construction, economical to manufacture, easy to install in a building wall opening such as a window opening, is of adequate strength to lower an object of the weight of a heavy person safely from an upper floor level of a building to the ground, is continuous in operation so that several persons may be lowered one after the other by use of the device, and which is smooth and positive in operation without any tendency to bind or slip at any time.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

Fig. 1 is an elevational view of a safety lowering device illustrative of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1 showing the operating components of the device in longitudinal cross section;

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view on an enlarged scale on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1; and,

Fig. 4 is an elevational view showing the improved safety lowering device in operative position in a window opening of a building.

With continued reference to the drawings, the numeral I generally designates a rectangular frame having a top member II a bottom member I2 and side members I3 and I4. A pair of brackets I5 and I6 are secured to the inner surface of the bottom member I2 and have leg portions extending inwardly substantially parallel to the vertical center line of the frame and spaced from each other. A pair of shafts I! and I8 are rotatably mounted in the lower end portion of the frame each having its outer end journalled in a suitable respective bearing, as indicated at I9 and 20, secured in the corresponding side frame members l3 and I4, and its inner end extending through an aperture in the outer end of the inwardly extending leg portion of the corresponding bracket I5 or I6. The two shafts I I and I8 are in axial alignment with end of a piston rod 22 which extends through the bottom end of a cylinder 23 and carries a piston 24 at its upper end which piston is reciprocable in the cylinder.

The upper end of the cylinder 23 is secured to a transverse shaft 25 the ends of which are journalled in inwardly projecting leg portions of angle brackets 26 and 21 secured to the under surface of the top member I I.

A filler cap 28 is provided in the top end Wall of the cylinder and the upper and lower end portions of the cylinder are connected by a restricted passage provided in an external longitudinal tube 29 the ends of which are hydraulically connected with the interior of the cylinder adjacent the opposite end walls thereof.

If desired, a valve screw 33 may be applied to the tube 29 in a manner to'adjustably restrict the passage therethrough to control the speed of operation of the device, and the piston 24 may also be provided with small apertures 3| extending therethrough to permit an extremely slow operation of the device in case the tube 29 is entirely closed off. A packing gland 32 surrounds the piston rod 22 at the bottom end of the cylinder to prevent leakage of fluid from the cylinder where the rod passes through the lower end wall of the cylinder.

A spool or drum 33 is rotatably mounted on the shaft I I and has a rope or cable 34 wound thereon and depending from the device, and a similar spool or drum 35 is rotatably mounted on the shaft I8 and has a rope or cable 36.wound thereon. A spacer 37 is disposed between the inwardly projecting leg of the bracket I5 and the adjacent end of spool 33 and a similar spacer 38 is disposed between the spool 35 and the inwardly projecting leg of bracket I6.

Ratchet means are provided to rotationally lock the cable drums to the respective crankshaft end portions for one direction of rotation. A convenient ratchet mechanism may comprise a dog 39 mounted on the outer end surface of the drum, a transverse pin 40 extending through a somewhat elongated aperture in the shaft, a washer 4| surrounding the shaft adjacent the pin and a compression spring 42 surrounding the shaft between the washer and the adjacent inner surface of the frame side member. The dog 39 has an inclined top surface and a notched end to receive the pin so that the drum may provided for the cables 34 and 3E and are preferably mounted on the side edge ofthe bottommember I2 immediately below the corresponding spools or drums 33 and 35. The tworleve'lling devices are similar in construction and each may comprise a rotatable shaft 45'having opposite screw threads thereon and' mounted at its end in journal blocks 46 and 41 secured to the frame. The shaft is driven from the inner end flange by a-=suitablegear train 48 and carriesasleeve whichismovable from one endof theshaft to therother andhas itsdirection reversed at each end of the shaftin the-conventional'manner. Acable engaging hook or loop 50' iscarried byathe-sleeve to laythe cable smoothly ontothe drum.--

The operation of the device is'believed tobe' readily apparent-from the-drawing andthe above description;

As-shown in Fig.4 the frame lU-is mounted inthe upper' part ofa window opening. Si by suitable means such as cap'screwsfl passing through theupper frame member H and into the" windowlintel: 53.- When it-is' desiredto loweran object or person from i the Windowthe end of' one of the cables 34 or 36 is attached to the object orgrasped by'the person and the-person or object suspended from-the cable, The cable will then unwind from the corresponding spool 33' or 35 and thehydraulic brakemechanism. including the piston' rod 22,.pistn 24' and: cylinder 23,. will operate to" control the rate at which the cable unwinds from the drum; The rate of descent can be-so regulated th'at a person or objectwill be' lowered from the window opening to the ground'level without'danger of injury.

When'one c'ablehas been unwound from the corresponding drum an object may be attached.

to the other cable; or the other cable may be grasped by a person desiring to" descend from the window, and as thissecond cablet i's'unwound from its associated drum the'othercablezwill be rewound on its drum, the cables being wound in:

opposite directions. on: the corresponding drums:

Bythis means, as soon as thesecondcablehasbeen unwound the-first cablefiwill have been completelyrewoundandisin condition for further use. so that another object or personmay be lowered from the window opening. The device may thus continue in operation as long as may be necessary or desired.

When the operation of the device has been completed at least one of the cables will be left in an unwound condition and this cable may then be manually rewound by rotating the corresponding spool on its respective shaft, the ratchet connection between the spool and the shaft permitting rotation of the spool in the proper direction to rewind the cable without operating the hydraulic mechanism.

The-invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The present embodiment is therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended 'claim rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning: and-a range of equivalency of the claim are therefore intended to be embraced shaft, disposed' one" at each' side of the crank;' a

cable on each= drum, said cables being oppositelywound; hydraulic brake'means operatively connected between said crank'and said frametocon' trol the speed of rotation of said drums-whem said cables are being unwound therefrom; and a respective one-waydr-ive' ratchet connection between eachdrum and said crankshaft whereby REFERENCES- CITED The following' references are" of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 374,596 Grayet al Dec. 13, 1887 456,003 Schneider et'all Ju1y'14', 1891 936,385 Thornburg' "Oct. 12,1909

2,091,418 Sbhoene Aug. 31, 1937 

